Wednesday, 19 August 2015

Hilda's dream comes true after finally getting to drive a tank at the age of 101

At the age of 101, this great-grandmother has finally achieved her life goal by getting behind the wheel.

But Hilda Jackson’s driving lesson wasn’t just in any old car. It was in a tank.

Hilda, who has 11 great-grandchildren, wanted to tick another thing off her bucket list and took control of a FV432 military tank, similar to the ones her husband drove during the Second World War.

Her obsession with army tanks had continued after her husband Raymond’s death in 2000 and she had been waiting for years to get her hands on one.

She said: “I don’t know much about it as he (Raymond) never spoke much about it, because there were so many men who wanted to drive a tank but couldn’t.”

Hilda’s lesson took place at Tank School in the village of Usk in Monmouthshire where military fanatics and those curious about driving military machines can try one out.
Hilda’s daughter Margaret Austin said: “We passed the Tank School a couple of years ago and she said ‘That’s something I’d love to do’, and asked me on her 100th birthday last year if it would be possible.”
Although Margaret, from Abergavenny, had initial fears about her mother’s health and safety, she said she could not refuse her the opportunity to do what she had wanted for so long.

“I think her being so active is why she’s stayed alive this long. She’s not afraid of death,” Margaret said.

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